The circumstances surrounding the death of a German Shepherd mix dog dragged to death at the Colorado National Monument last week are still emerging. So we need to take care to avoid racing to conclusions before all the facts are known.

But at this point, authorities believe the stolen dog named Buddy was tied to a vehicle and deliberately pulled to his death in a horrifying manner.

The reaction around the country has ranged from revulsion to calls for vengeance against the alleged perpetrator.

It’s hard to know quite how to react when such an awful thing happens. It hits most of us like a kick in the gut because pets are so trusting and helpless against the cruelty of human beings. We weep for the animals that are killed and demand that justice be served against the abusers.

Yes, justice must be served if a suspect is convicted after receiving due process under the law.

But that’s not the only thing we can do for Buddy.

I have a proposition. What if everyone who is saddened and angered about Buddy’s plight turned tragedy into a positive?

There are many good organizations and lots of good people who are doing their very best to make life better for all the homeless pets in our community. Why not help them with a little money or a donation of needed supplies? They would love it and you could help save some lives,

Wanted: One human, must be active and willing to put up with an adventurous animal pal. (Oh, and must be able to supply pal with food and shelter.)

The Humane Society of Boulder Valley has been using its own type of want-ads to match prospective owners with cats up for adoption.

The “ads” in this case are color-coded.

A cat with a “purple” code is quiet and reserved.

An “orange” cat is a middle-of-the road “shape-shifter,” sometimes qiuiet and sometimes active.

A “green” cat is the most outgoing, most demanding and needs the most exercise.

The goal of Boulder Valley’s program is to reduce the return rate of cats by “bringing a person and a pet together differently,” said Brigette Chesne, director of shelter pragrams.

Boulder Valley has had the program four years and it seems to be working.

“Our percentage (of adopted cats that get returned to the shelter) is 9-12 percent. Nationally, other shelters have rates from 25 to 40 percent,” Chesne said.

“The idea is that if we could categorize cats we could do a better job of matching them. We can suggest a specific cat for a specific person,” she explained.

The program is operated under the auspices of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. It was developed by Dr. Emily Weiss, with whom Boulder Valley had a preivious relationship.

“We were among several shelters that kicked off the program – the only one in Colorado,” Chesne said, . (Dr. Weiss) helped us get our program going.”

Chesne said the program calls for an evaluation of all cats entering the shelter.

A cat’s general ‘”feline-ality,” including valiance, playfulness,and adaptability, is assessed. Each cat is scored and then categorized. Each category is color-coded and describes the cats’ feline-ality in common language terms.

Each animal’s classification is listed on its kennel card at the shelter, as well as on their individual dossier page on Boulder Valley’s web site.

” We don’t do an assessment until the cats have been here for three days,” Chesne said. “It did lengthen cats’ stays with us.”

In step two, a client fills out a survey about what sort of attributes the client is looking for. It asks them to identify how they envision a new cat fitting into their home and family.

Following a review of the questionnaire, staff give each adopter a color-coded Guest Pass and direct them to cats that match the color of their passes, ensuring the best match for both adopters and cats.

“If you can anticpate what the cat is going to do, we can offer kind of a predictor,” Chesne said. “The adopter knows exaxtly what to expect.”

Most cats adopted fall in orange category, she said.

And who gets green cats? “Those of us who love the feisty terrier dogs love the same kind of cat and active lifestyle.,” Chesne said.

Fetch takes a topical look at a variety of issues affecting pets, including the latest research results.. It seeks to provide useful information for Colorado pet owners and to spotlight the work of Colorado animal welfare groups.